Politics & Government

Planning Commission Gives Nod to Revised Promenade Plans

The township supervisors will consider the revised application for The Promenade at its next meeting on June 13.

 

Revised plans for a mixed-use development at the old Acme site on Sycamore Street were given the green light Tuesday by the Newtown Township Planning Commission.

The planning commission unanimously voted to recommend that the township Board of Supervisors approve the revised application. The supervisors will consider the application at its next meeting on June 13.

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Plans for the development, called The Promenade, have been revised since approval was given to McGrath in 2009. The site has sat dormant since that approval.

According to the applicant, which is now comprised of a group of investors including Newtown Athletic Club owner Jim Worthington, the new plans feature 20,000 square feet of retail space in two buildings. The previous plans called for 22,600 square feet of retail in one building that featured a breezeway.

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The new plans feature five retail tenants, including Anthropologie, as well as 26 apartment rental units. The previous plan included 25 condominiums.

The buildings included in the revised plans are the same height as those approved in 2009. Parking has been reconfigured, according to the applicant, and there is no longer underground parking included in the plans.

Sycamore Street Community Association President Shawn Ward said his group, which is made up of Sycamore Street businesses and property owners, “wholeheartedly” supports the approval of the revised plans.

“The Sycamore Street Community Association is thrilled and endorses this plan 100 percent,” Ward said. “We really, really want this thing to move along. It’s time.”

It is unclear the extent of McGrath’s current involvement in the project. A representative from McGrath was at the meeting Tuesday and information about The Promenade still appears on McGrath’s website. However, a sign featuring the company’s name that once hung at the site has been removed and replaced with one that includes the Newtown Athletic Club's logo.


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